In an undisclosed location a scientist makes the ultimate
mistake and drops a vial containing a deadly virus. Unaware
that he has been affected, he travels the world spreading
the disease. In an apocalyptically short time the death spreads
killing the majority of the human race...

So
started Survivors, a thirty-eight episode, science
fiction show which was shown in the late nineteen seventies.
The show was the brain child of Terry Nation, well known for
his work on Doctor Who, and dealt with the realities
of surviving catastrophic events. When the show was originally
aired it scared the life out of me, I suddenly realised that
I didn't know how to grow and process tobacco or grapes, the
end of the world was going to be a very miserable place indeed.

The
End of the World: The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to
Survivors covers just about everything you would ever
want to know about this thought provoking programme. Written
by Rich Cross and Andy Priestner with a forward by Pennant
Roberts, the book covers the show from its genesis to its
final episode. In fact, the book brought back so many good
memories that I instantly wanted to get my DVD's out and start
to re-watch the series, however some bugger stole mine.

The
main part of the book is cut into three sections, reflecting
the three seasons that the show ran. Each section starts with
an in-depth and detailed look at the production of each season
before moving on to the individual episodes. Each episode
contains a synopsis as well as a list of who was involved
in the show before moving on to more background material and
a critique. Each section is rounded off with a season review.

Finishing
the book are five individual sections dealing with the show
following its cancellation. Life after Death looks
at fan fiction, the slow progress of the show first onto VHS
and then onto DVD (obviously I had to stop reading at that
point due to the tears in my eyes - the horror, the horror).
Next up, a review of every character that appeared in the
show, nice addition but a little redundant except to anyone
who had never seen the show and I guess if you've never seen
the show you're not likely to buy this book. A location guide,
with pictures, comes next with some nice shots of the houses
and farms for any die hard fans who want to plan their holidays
around visiting these places.

The
last section is dealt with as an appendix and looks at the
connections between Survivors and Doomwatch.
This section I found the least convincing, as it attempts
to connect the two shows by who worked where. It's a valid
point but the same point could have been made with other shows
of the time, it's not like there were a cast of thousands
all trying to work in television Sci-Fi, so there is bound
to be a lot of cross over.

That small gripe aside, this book is a must have for any true
fan of Survivors, you would have to go some way to
discover a fact about the show that isn't contained in this
reasonably priced information rich tome.

Charles
Packer

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